REAL WEDDINGS
LUVVIE + CARNELL C H I C AG O , ILLINOIS SEPTEMBER 29, 2019 P H O TOG R A P H E D B Y K e s h a L a m b e r t
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t all started with a beard pull. Yup, you read that right. When Luvvie and Carnell f irst met, she pulled on his beard to get his attention when he walked
past her. Of course he was stunned, and truthfully, so was she at how bold she was. Carnell's response is what set them on their journey to love. He replied to her acknowledgement of pulling his beard and said, "If you're gonna do, then do it like you mean it." They exchanged numbers right after that and have been together ever since. With a huge social media audience, a NYTimes best selling book, I'm Judging You, and a TED talk that has garnered over 4 million views, Luvvie Ajayi has built a massive empire of fans and admirers across the globe. It's no surprise that her Instagram post announcing her engagement went viral very quickly. Fans were overjoyed to learn of her engagement to Carnell Jones and wanted to know more. They had been dating for several years before Carnell popped the big question in Paris in November of 2018, but only those close to her knew any details about their relationship. Although Luvvie has kept her private life tightly secured and out of the eyes of her massive audience, she felt the need to let us all in on what would be one of the most sacred moments in her life -- the #LuvvJones wedding. When they started the wedding planning process a few months after their engagement, they vowed that their wedding would be "good vibes, good food, and good music" and it turned out to be everything they wanted and more. Their hashtag #luvvjones was a perfect play on the movie Love Jones while incorporating elements of both of their names (Luvvie Ajayi and Carnell Jones). "I know I’m biased, but it might be the best wedding hashtag of all time." Luvvie states during episode 33 of her podcast Rants and Randomness. During the wedding planning process, which was made painless by her wedding planner and designer Akeshi Akinseye of Kesh Events, Luvvie and Carnell went through every single detail of their multi-wedding day. They had roughly six months to plan a traditional Nigerian wedding AND a Western Wedding. (It's diff icult enough to plan one wedding. Try planning two and having them occur on the same day in
FALL.WINTER.2019
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